Language Teacher Cognition on English Grammar Assessment: Investigating EFL Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices regarding Classroom-based Assessment in Public Higher-Educational Institutions in Saudi Arabia

This thesis investigates teachers’ beliefs about English grammar assessment (EGA) and how these are linked to their professional practices when writing their grammar exams in their educational contexts, in higher educational facilities in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The central focus of this study is threefold: (a) teachers‘ beliefs and factors which shaped these beliefs, (b) their actual practices and the factors that influenced their EGA, and (c) the relationship between teachers’ beliefs and practices regarding EGA. The study is guided by the theoretical framework of Activity Theory (AT) and more specifically by Engeström’s (1999) third generation of AT which was used as the interpretive tool to explore the two systems: how teachers’ view EGA and how they actually assess EG in their classes. AT also allows to identify the contradictions that create conflicts between EFL teachers’ beliefs and practices with regards to EGA. A mixed-method research design was used and included a questionnaire (N= 94), semi-structured interviews (N= 32), retrospective thinking (N= 20) and document analysis (N= 28) with EFL teachers in four public higher educational facilities. The study showed both congruence and tensions between teachers‘ beliefs and practices. Teachers‘ beliefs were greatly congruent with their practices regarding the purposes of EGA, EFL teachers’ role in constructing their grammar exams, preferable items format and the sources from which EFL teachers draw exam question . Conversely, teachers‘ beliefs were incongruent with their practices concerning how EG should be assessed: integratively vs. explicitly. In addition, several factors: contextual, personal and conceptual, were identified as to have helped shaped , affected and/ or altered EFL teachers’ beliefs and practices with regards to EGA. This study concludes by providing some implications which could serve more than one purpose by creating knowledge which would be useful for researchers in the field of language teacher cognition and English grammar assessment

Sensitivity Studies for Argus 1000 Micro-Spectrometer: Measurements of Atmospheric Total Column Carbon Dioxide By Reflected Sunlight

A sensitivity analysis of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) and the atmospheric total column carbon dioxide was performed. The absorption of reflected solar radiation from the atmosphere and Earths surface near 1.58 m is utilized in this study. The CO_2 near infrared (NIR) bands at 1.58 m and 1.60 m are located within the Argus 1000 spectrometer spectral range, 1.0-1.7m. The model findings suggest that Argus 1000 spectrometer signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) must be 2000:1 to detect a 1% CO_2 change in the boundary layer (0-2 km). Argus 1000 spectrometer with its current SNR (~ 1520:1) can detect approximately 1.31% CO_2 change in the boundary layer (ABL). Two solar radiance paths were considered using GENSPECT, a line-by-line radiative transfer model, to examine the solar radiance spectra seen by the sensor. In path one, sunlight is assumed to travel through a longer path length in the atmosphere and reflect off the ground back to space. In path two, the solar beam is assumed to travel through a shorter path length and reflect off a cloud layer that is 4 km above the ground. The model findings suggest that the ratio between the solar radiances in both paths is approximately 4.5. The radiance change in both paths was examined for a 1% CO_2 perturbation in the boundary layer. The effect of the presence of clouds on both solar radiation and CO_2 absorption is also analyzed using flight data collected by the Argus 1000 spectrometer over cloudy and cloud-free scenes. The finding shows that CO_2 absorption in a clear sky condition is approximately 5.3% higher than when clouds are present

The patellofemoral joint alignment in patients with symptomatic accessory navicular bone

Quadriceps angle (Q angle) provides useful information about the alignment of the patellofemoral joint. The aim of the present study was to assess a possible link between malalignment of the patellofemoral joint and symptomatic accessory navicular (AN) bone as an underlying cause in early adolescence using Q angle measurements. This study was performed on patients presenting to the Foot and Ankle Clinic at the Jordanian Royal Medical Services because of pain on the medial side of the foot that worsened with activities or shoe wearing, with no history of knee pain, between September 2013 and April 2015. The Q angle was measured using a goniometer in 27 early adolescents aged 10-18 years diagnosed clinically and radiologically with symptomatic AN bone, only seven patients had associated pes planus deformity; the data were compared with age appropriate normal arched feet without AN. Navicular drop test (NDT) was used to assess the amount of foot pronation. The mean Q angle value among male and female patients with symptomatic AN with/without pes planus was significantly higher than in controls with normal arched feet without AN (p<0.05). Symptomatic AN feet were also associated with higher NDT values (p<0.001). The present findings suggest an early change in patellofemoral joint alignment in patients with symptomatic AN bone with/without arch collapse. Therefore, it is recommended that Q angle assessment should be an essential component of the examination in patients with symptomatic AN bone

Characterisation, coverage, and orientation of functionalised graphene using sum-frequency generation spectroscopy.

We report the unambiguous detection of phenyl groups covalently attached to functionalised graphene using non-linear spectroscopy. Sum-frequency generation was employed to probe graphene on a gold surface after chemical functionalisation using a benzene diazonium salt. We observe a distinct resonance at 3064 cm-1 which can clearly be assigned to an aromatic C-H stretch by comparison with a self-assembled monolayer on a gold substrate formed from benzenethiol. Not only does sum-frequency generation spectroscopy allow one to characterise functionalised graphene with higher sensitivity and much better specificity than many other spectroscopic techniques, but it also opens up the possibility to assess the coverage of graphene with functional groups, and to determine their orientation relative to the graphene surface

Real-world evidence of the effects of sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors on the dosing of diuretics in patients with heart failure: a retrospective cohort study

Background: Heart failure (HF) was estimated to impact approximately 64 million individuals worldwide in 2017 and is predicted to rise in the coming years. Therefore, the aim of our study was to evaluate the effects of sodium-glucose transport protein 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors on the dosing of diuretics among individuals diagnosed with HF.Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at Security Forces Hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, between January 2018 and August 2022. The study included adult patients who were diagnosed with heart failure and received dapagliflozin and/or diuretic. A descriptive analysis was conducted to identify significant differences between both groups by using the chi-square test for categorical variables and the Student’s t-test for continuous variables. A logistic regression model was also run to identify the odds of each event. Statistical significance was indicated by p values less than .05.Results: Overall reduction in diuretics was reported in 68 patients in the SGLT2 inhibitors plus diuretic therapy group, while in the diuretic therapy group 25 patients reported overall reduction in diuretics (OR = 4.81, 95% [2.74–8.45]). The reduction of the loop dose level was reported by 58 patients in the SGLT2 inhibitors plus diuretic group and by 25 patients in the diuretic group (OR = 3.48, 95% [1.98–6.11]). The discontinuation of thiazide was reported by 16 patients in the SGLT2 inhibitors plus diuretic therapy group, but by only two patients in the diuretic group (OR = 9.04, 95% [2.03–40.19]). After 6 months, ejection fraction was increased by 2.74 in the SGLT2 inhibitors plus diuretic group (p = .0019) and decreased by 2.56 in the diuretic group (p = .0485), both of which were statistically significant. The mean dose changes were decreased by 14.52 in the SGLT2 inhibitors plus diuretic group (p < .0001), which was statistically significant.Conclusion: Treatment with SGLT2 inhibitors plus diuretic significantly reduced the patients’ diuretic requirements. Therefore, our finding supports the theoretical concept of minimizing the level of diuretic upon the initiation of SGLT2 inhibitors

Anti-nociceptive and desensitizing effects of olvanil on capsaicin-induced thermal hyperalgesia in the rat

Background: Olvanil (NE 19550) is a non-pungent synthetic analogue of capsaicin, the natural pungent ingredient of capsicum which activates the transient receptor potential vanilloid type-1 (TRPV1) channel and was developed as a potential analgesic compound. Olvanil has potent anti-hyperalgesic effects in several experimental models of chronic pain. Here we report the inhibitory effects of olvanil on nociceptive processing using cultured dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons and compare the effects of capsaicin and olvanil on thermal nociceptive processing in vivo; potential contributions of the cannabinoid CB1 receptor to olvanil’s anti-hyperalgesic effects were also investigated. Methods: A hot plate analgesia meter was used to evaluate the anti-nociceptive effects of olvanil on capsaicin-induced thermal hyperalgesia and the role played by CB1 receptors in mediating these effects. Single cell calcium imaging studies of DRG neurons were employed to determine the desensitizing effects of olvanil on capsaicin-evoked calcium responses. Statistical analysis used Student’s t test or one way ANOVA followed by Dunnett’s post-hoctest as appropriate. Results: Both olvanil (100 nM) and capsaicin (100 nM) produced significant increases in intracellular calcium concentrations [Ca2+]I in cultured DRG neurons. Olvanil was able to des ensitise TRPV1 responses to further capsaicin exposure more effectively than capsaicin. Intra plantar injection of capsaicin (0.1, 0.3 and 1μg) produced a robust TRPV1-dependant thermal hyperalgesia in rats, whilst olvanil (0.1, 0.3 and 1μg) produced no hyperalgesia, emphasizing its lack of pungency. The highest dose of olvanil significantly reduced the hyperalgesic effects of capsaicin in vivo. Intraplantar injection of the selective cannabinoid CB1 receptor antagonist rimonabant (1μg) altered neither capsaicin-induced thermal hyperalgesia nor the desensitizing properties of olvanil, indicating a lack of involvement of CB1receptors. Conclusions: Olvanil is effective in reducing capsaicin-induced thermal hyperalgesia, probably via directly desensitizingTRPV1 channels in a CB 1 receptor-independent fashion. The results presented clearly support the potential for olvanil in the development of new topical analgesic preparations for treating chronic pain conditions while avoiding the unwanted side effects of capsaicin treatments